Automatic coupling for railway-cars.



. G. A; HERMANSON.

'Patentod Mar. 27, I900.

AUTOMATIC COUPLING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

(No Model.)

' WITNESSES (Application filed. Oct. 30, 1899.)

j 77 a; INIVENZQR.

A; ATTORNE Y5,

GUSTAF A. HERMANSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO JAMES MUNTON, OF MAYWOOD, ILLINOIS.

AUTOMATIC COUPLING FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 646,174, dated March 27, 1900.

Application filed October 30, 1899! Serial No. 735|1 4=- (ND model-3 To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GUSTAF A. HERMANSON, a citizen of the United States, residing in Ohicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvelnent in Automatic Couplers forRailway-Oars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic couplers for railway-cars, and more particularly to the class of car couplers commonly known as Master Oar-Builders couplers, and employing a forked draw-head, a pivoted knuckle, and a gravity-lock. 1

The objects of myinvention are to provide a Master Oar-Builders coupler having the customary forked draw-head, pivoted knuckle, and gravity-lock which shall at once he of simple, strong, efficient, and durable construction and in which the gravity-lock shall be incapable of creeping or jumping upward while the train is in motion,- and thus permitting the accidental uncoupling of the cars of a train and occasioning accidents, and also to provide means for conveniently setting the lock in its position to uncouple or in its elevated position when the knuckle is closed, so that after the lock has once been raised to uncouple the cars the knuckle can subsequently open when the uncoupled cars are separated. Y

My invention consists in the means I employ to accomplish this object or result-that is to say, it consists in the combination, in a car-coupler, of a pivoted knuckle and a forked draw-head, with a gravity locki n g pin or block, provided with a shoulder on its front side, adapted to engage a corresponding shoulder on the draw-head through which the lockingpin passes, said locking pin or block having a pivotal lifting-piece hinged to the lockingblock in such position that when the liftingpiece is pulled upward to raise the lockingblock it will swing or turn on its pivot sufiioiently to force the shoulder on the lockingblock from under the shoulder on the draw head, and thus permit the locking-block to be freely moved upward when it is desired to lift it to uncouple the cars, while the engaging shoulders on the locking-block and drawhead effectually prevent the locking pin or block from creeping, jumping, or moving up ward accidentally. As an additional security the pivotal lifting-piece is also provided with a shoulder on its rear side, which engages a corresponding shoulder on the draw-head. The tilting movement of the pivoted liftingpiece causes these shoulders to clear each other when upward strain is put upon the lift-ing=piece to lift the lock. The lifting-piece is pivoted to the locking pin or block near its front edge or side, so that when the look is suspended from the lifting-piece it tilts or in-- clines forward by gravity into position to bring the lower end of the lock over the eX- treme end of the knuckle-tail, and thus automatically support the lock in its elevated position or position to uncouple until the closed knuckle is swung open by the separation of the cars, the lock riding on the knuckle during the opening of the knuckle, and thus remaining in its elevated position or position to couple.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification and in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts through'- out the drawings, Figure 1 is a horizontal section of a car-coupler embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sec tion on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is avertical longitudinal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings, A is the forked draw-head, having the pivot arm a and guard-arm 0,.

B is the knuckle, C the pivot-pin by which the knuckle is pivoted to the draw-head, and D the gravity locking pin or block-by which the knuckle is held in its closed or coupled position.

F is the lifting-piece, hinged by the pivotpin f to the locking pin or block D, near the front edge thereof. The lockingpin or block D is provided with a shoulder d on its front side, which fits under and engages a corresponding shoulder a on the draw-head when the locking-pin is in its lowermost or looking position. These shoulders prevent any possibility of the look creeping or jumping upward or moving upward accidentally. .The pivoted lifting-piece F, when upward strain is put upon it to lift the block, serves to tilt the block backward, so that the shoulder (Z on the lock clears the shoulder a on the drawhead, thus permitting the lock to be freely moved upward by the lifting-piece. The lifting-piece F is also provided with a shoulder or lip f on its rear side, which fits under and engages a corresponding shoulder or ledge a on the draw-head when the lock is in its lowermost position, and this also prevents the lock from creeping or jumping upward. The lock is thus provided with a double security against accidental uncoupling. lVhen the lock is moved upward or lifted by the lifting piece, the pivoted lifting-piece by swinging forward causes the lip or shoulderf to clear the shoulder a on the draw-head, and thus permits the lifting-piece and lock to move upward.

At the extreme forward end or corner I) of the tail 1) of the knuckle I provide a projection 12 having a groove Z) to receive the toe or projection d at the rear side of the lower end of the locking pin or block when the locking-pin is raised by the lifting-pin into its elevated or uncoupling position. Owing to the fact that the lifting-piece is pivoted to the locking-block near its front side or front of its center of gravity, when the lock is suspended from the lifting-piece its lower end will tilt or swing forward by gravity orautomatically, and thus bring the toe 01 over the grooved projection b on the tail of the knuckle, thereby causing the lock to be supported in this position for uncoupling, or, as it is commonly called, set for uncoupling. The passage-way a in the draw-head, through which the gravitylocking-pinD passes,is made somewhat larger than the lock to permit of this tilting movement of the lock to set for uncoupling and also permits the 'lock to swing sufliciently to cause the shoulders d and a to clear each other when the lock is lifted. The lock is preferably furnished with an inclined face (1 to bear against the tail of the knuckle,as will be readily understood from the cross-section of the lock in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The lock is also preferably provided with an inclined slot or recess 61 to receive an inclined block (1 said block fitting in part in a recess a in the draw-head, and which serves to prevent the lock from being lifted too high or entirely out of the draw-head.

I claim- 1. In an automatic car-coupler, the combination with a pivoted knuckle, of a forked draw-head haviug'a passage-way for a gravity locking pin or block, furnished with a shoulder to engage a corresponding shoulder on the locking pin or block, a gravity locking pin or block having a shoulder adapted to fit under and engage said shoulder on the drawhead to prevent the lock from creeping, jumping or moving upward accidentally, and a pivotal lifting-piece hinged to the locking-block and serving by its pivotal or swinging move ment to cause the shoulders on the lockingblock and draw-head to clear each other when the locking pin or block is raised by the lifting-piece, substantially as specified.

2. In an automatic car-coupler, the combination with a pivoted knuckle, of a forked draw-head having a passage-way fora gravity locking pin or block, furnished with a shoulder to engage a corresponding shoulder on the lockin g pin or block, a gravity locking pin or block having a shoulder adapted to fit under and engage said shoulder on the drawhead to prevent the look from creeping, j umping or moving upward accidentally, and a pivoted lifting-piece hinged to the lockingblock and serving by its pivotal or swinging movement to cause the shoulders on the locking-block and draw-head to clear each other when the locking pin or block is raised by the lifting-piece, said lifting-piece being also provided with a shoulderor lip fitting under the shoulder on the draw-head when the lock is in its lowermost position, substantially as specified.

3. The combination with a forked drawhead and pivoted knuckle, of a locking pin or block and a lifting-piece pivoted thereto near its front side and serving, when the lock is suspended from thelifting-piece to cause the lower end of the lock to tilt forward over the corner of the knuckle, and thus support the lock in position for uncoupling, said drawhead having a passage-way for the lockingpin furnished with a shoulder, and said'lifting-piece having a shoulder engaging the shoulder on the draw-head to prevent the lock fromcreeping upward, substantially as specified.

l. The combination in a car-coupler, with a forked draw-head havinga vertical passage= way to receive a vertically-sliding lockingpin, of a pivoted knuckle, a vertically-sliding gravity locking-pin, a pivotal lifting-piece hinged at its lower end to said locking-pin near the front edge of said locking-pin, and provided with a lip or shoulder above its hinge-pivot and on the opposite side thereof from the hinge-pivot, the draw-head having acorresponding lip or shoulder engaging said shoulder on the pivotal lifting-piece to prevent the lock from creeping or moving upward accidentally, substantially as specified.

5. The combination with a forked drawhead and pivoted knuckle, of a lockin g pin or block and a lifting-piece pivoted thereto near its front side and serving, when the lock is suspended from the lifting-piece to cause the lower end of the lock to tilt forward over the corner of the knuckle, and thus support the lock in position for uncoupling, the tail of said knuckle having a grooved projection I), and the lower end of the lock having a too or projection d adapted to fit in said grooved projection on the knuckle-tail, said draw-head having a passage-way for the locking-pin f urnished with a shoulder, and said lifting-piece having a shoulder engaging the shoulder on lock and adapted by its swinging movement the draw-head to prevent the look from creepto cause the shoulders on the lock and draw- 10 ing upward, substantially as specified. head to clear each other,substantially as speci- 6. The combination with a forked drawfied.

5 head, pivoted knuckle and gravity-lock fur- GUSTAF A. HERMANSON.

nished with a shoulder adapted to fit under \Vitnesses: and engage a corresponding shoulder on the H. M. MUNDAY, draw-head, and a lifting-piece pivoted to said EDMUND ADoooK. 

